Homer’s Odyssey is the third episode of Season 1 of The Simpsons. It originally aired on January 21, 1990. The episode marked the first appearances of many characters, including Waylon Smithers, Otto Mann, Chief Wiggum, Jasper Beardley, Sam & Larry, Mr. & Mrs. Winfield, Blinky the Three-Eyed Fish, and Sherri and Terri. It features Homer getting fired before becoming a safety crusader and eventually being re-hired.
Chalkboard Message and Couch Gag
In this episode of The Simpsons, we open with Bart writing, “I will not skateboard in the halls”. This leads into a very lengthy intro scene I don’t really remember, with Bart taking a bus stop sign so the bus passes by the passengers. It also shows Lisa coming home with a pile of books and her saxophone. The second couch gag shows the family sitting on the couch, only for it to fall apart.
Field Trip
We begin the episode at Springfield Elementary, where Ms. Krabappel is rounding up the kids for a field trip. There’s some graffiti from El Barto in the background that was a nice touch in such an early episode. We get our first glimpse of Otto, the school bus driver, who manages to park the bus on the curb. Bart gets caught up asking Otto about his new tattoo and then has to sit next to Wendel, who “pukes on every bus ride”. The bus ride is notable for passing such landmarks as the Springfield Toxic Waste Dump, the Springfield Tire Yard (which isn’t on fire yet!), and then Springfield State Prison. They end up going back to the school, where Otto says he’s taking a shortcut.
The Original Waylon Smithers
Of course, Bart is terrified of Wendel puking on him and speaks up to Ms. K. She tells him he’ll have to sing “John Henry was a Steel Drivin’ Man”. This makes the twins, Sherri and Terri, want to make Bart sing. They were evil from the moment of their first appearance. They both kiss him, and he screams. Bart then does indeed sing in his over-the-top Bart Simpson voice. They then arrive at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant and are greeted by Waylon Smithers, who is giving a presentation on nuclear power. Smithers is portrayed as a black man in this episode, apparently due to a coloring error, according to what I’ve read. This was later explained as an extreme tan. Sure. I feel like they just should have kept the look he had here rather than changing it.
You’re Fired!
The kids get to watch an educational video with Smilin’ Joe Fission before taking a tour. This is where we see the three-eyed fish for the first time outside a window in some water around the nuclear facility. Homer tries to make a good impression on Bart by driving a cart back to his workstation, but is distracted by Bart calling his name and drives right into a pipe, releasing radioactive gas. I guess it’s not that radioactive since nobody seems to worry that Homer and the kids aren’t wearing protective clothing. Sherri and Terri’s dad then fires Homer. Ouch. Homer is having a rough day. Marge has a motivational quote that says, “You’ve caused plenty of industrial accidents, and you’ve always bounced back.”
Bart’s First Prank Call
This is the first episode in which Bart calls Moe’s Tavern to mess with Moe. In this one, he asks for Mr. Freely. I.P. Freely. Moe promptly tells him that he’s going to “Slice his little heart in half”. This one always sticks out to me. It’s not even a hilarious joke. It’s just always the one that stands out in my mind when I think of Bart’s prank calls.
“Don’t Worry, Daddy. We Love You Anyway”
Homer is so broke, he can’t even buy another beer at Moe’s. Marge ends up getting a job as a roller skating server at a restaurant in a funny little bit. Homer ends up lying on the couch, to which Bart takes advantage of his sloth-like state to sign his report card while Maggie pokes him in the eye. It’s the first real interaction we’ve seen with Maggie and a sign of things to come with her silent comedy. Homer sees a beer commercial and goes to the fridge to get some. All he finds is a cake that says, “Don’t worry, Daddy. We love you anyway”. This episode has been savage to Homer so far. He seems like he’s on an island by himself with no life preserver.
A Life-Saving Epiphany
Homer does something dastardly that I wasn’t expecting. He smashes Bart’s piggy bank to get money for a beer. It’s not even enough for one, and it sends him spiraling. He writes a suicide note to the family and leaves it on the kitchen table. Homer brings a giant boulder to the river and is stopped by the family, who tell him how much they love him. He then has the epiphany that he needs a stop sign installed at the intersection, as the family is almost run over by a car. That’s one way to find purpose in life, I suppose. It was a really dark story for such a comedic show. It felt like Homer’s entire world was crashing down on him.
Sign, Sign, Everywhere a Sign
The family then goes to a city council meeting, where Chief Wiggum, dressed in a black police uniform rather than the traditional blue one, is handing out a sketch of El Barto. The sketch hilariously looks like an older Bart with a cigarette in his mouth. Bart thinks this is cool. Homer ends up getting his stop sign, no problem, and this ignites a passion within him to do more good. The problem is that he put signs EVERYWHERE for EVERYTHING in Springfield. It looks like a bunch of litter. This leads Homer to go after Mr. Burns and the Nuclear Power Plant rather than the “small potatoes”. It seems like that was a quick escalation.
Back to the Power Plant
Homer holds a rally at the power plant, and this draws the ire of Mr. Burns, who wants to re-hire Homer to make everything blow over. Home ends up taking the job as Safety Inspector at the Nuclear Power Plant and promptly falls off the ledge and onto the crowd below to end the episode. This one ended somewhat abruptly for me. I feel like they tried to fit in a little too much and had to rush the ending. It’s a shame, as the story was very compelling. You can tell that the writers were still trying to make everything fit together at this point.
Final Thoughts
Homer’s Odyssey was a classic Simpsons episode. This one had so much packed into it, from first appearances by many memorable characters, and Bart’s first prank call. I’m still surprised by how different some of the characters looked in these early episodes, and I’m puzzled about why they were changed. The story behind this episode was really emotional at times. Homer felt he wasn’t worthy to live anymore. That’s a crazy subject to cover so early in the series. This was my favorite episode so far, and I hope The Simpsons start hitting their stride with this one on. It’s been fun to look at these episodes in greater detail.
